The Deacon of Dobbinsville eBook

As before stated, Mount Olivet church flourished.
She was nestled among the picturesque Ozark Hills,
about midway between Ridgetown and Dobbinsville.
Everybody in the community, almost, who had any religious
inclination, and some who had none, belonged to Mount
Olivet. She boasted in being the largest church
in all Randolph County—­the churches at
Ridgetown and Dobbinsville not excepted. When
I say that Mount Olivet church flourished, I do not
mean that she flourished in spiritual things.
Indeed, her candle of vital religion had well-nigh
flickered out. Scarcely a member could be found
who would testify to a real experience of salvation
from sin. There were three things for which the
members of this particular church were remarkable,
namely, they were great sticklers for the faith of
their church, they were all holiness-fighters, they
all used tobacco in some form.

CHAPTER II

Deacon Gramps sat on his plow-handles. The sultry
August day was drawing to a close. The sun was
just ready to roll its bright red disk behind the
western horizon. The Deacon seemed to be in a
deep meditation. He cast a glance at his beautiful
farm as it stretched itself out for a mile toward
the river on the one side and nestled snugly against
the foot of the limestone hill on the other side.
The large white farmhouse with green trimming cozily
planted on a blue-grass knoll across the brook seemed
to bid him be at rest. The large red barn just
back of the house stood out in sharp contrast against
the green-foliaged mountain. The gold-colored
balls on the lightning rods glistened in the farewell
rays of the receding sun. Mount Olivet Church
reared her white walls modestly from the brow of the
blue-grass knoll a quarter of a mile eastward.
Deacon Gramps was, at the close of this peaceful summer
day, indulging in a mental congratulation of himself
on being so favorably situated in life. Everybody
recognized Farmer Gramps as being the wealthiest man
in all Spruce Township. He owned the finest and
fattest horses that were driven to Mount Olivet Church.
His cattle roamed the forests for miles around, and
his hogs cracked acorns on every hillside.

Apart from his worldly wealth he was the most distinguished
member of Mount Olivet church. For years he had
been deacon in said church, and was president of the
official board. In fact, he was as truly a part
of the Church as was the pulpit on the platform or
the bell in the steeple. No meeting was complete
without him. He was an indispensable part of the
service. He always sat in the same pew, and none
coming into the Church previously to Deacon Gramps
ever dared sit in his pew any more than they dared
to monopolize the preacher’s chair in the pulpit.
He always enjoyed the double pleasure of chewing his
tobacco and hearing the sermon simultaneously, and
this necessitated his occupying a pew near the window,
as you may well suppose. This window was known
to roguish boys as “Deacon Window” and
not even the bravest of these boys dared peep through
this window during services as was their custom in
the case of the other windows.